THIRTY YEARS’ WAR

The Thirty Years’ War engulfed Europe between 1618 and 1648. It was a clash between Protestants and Catholics in Germany, which spread into a wider conflict involving Denmark, Sweden, and France.

Table 48. THIRTY YEARS’ WAR

1618

Protestant revolt in Prague

1625–1629

Denmark enters
war for the Protestants

1630

Sweden joins Protestant cause

1635

France joins the war as Sweden’s ally

1646

France and Sweden invade Bavaria

1648

Treaty of Westphalia ends the war

WHO WAS THROWN FROM A WINDOW IN PRAGUE?

The Catholic Habsburg family ruled the Holy Roman Empire and Spain. When the Habsburgs tried to place a Catholic on the throne of Protestant Bohemia, their representatives were hurled from a window of Prague castle. Rebellion spread across Germany as Protestant princes within the empire challenged its authority.

WHO WAS THE LION OF THE NORTH?

The war was part of a wider struggle between the Holy Roman Empire and its enemies. Denmark, Sweden, and France all opposed the empire. The Swedish king Gustavus Adolphus, “Lion of the North,” was victorious at Lützen in 1632, but died in battle.